The Reparation Theory in European Union Damages Liabilities Cases: Challenges for Data Breaches

As data breaches often affect a large number of data subjects, the material and non-material damages sustained from the violations of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) are staggering. Meanwhile, EU law lacks clarity on this subject. Previous EU case law has established the reparation theory to address issues relating to damages claims. However, this theory may encounter specific challenges when it is applied to EU data breaches, with regard to the juridical practices involved in identifying breaches of data rights, the dispensable legal basis for compensation claims, the identification of legally relevant damages, the quantification of damages, and the sufficiency of reparation. Besides, these issues also crystalise what rights EU data laws confer on individuals and whether the reparation theory is sufficient to guarantee the full effect of EU law.